Department for Transport

Passenger Ships: Rescue Services

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what regulations and procedures are in place relating to the evacuation of ships designed to carry more than 5,000 passengers and crew, when those ships are too far from land for any air support; and where, and when, the last full-scale trial of such a scenario was undertaken.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: All UK passenger ships, such as described in the question, must comply with international requirements as laid down in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Chapter 5 Regulation 7. These requirements on the vessel owner include having an evacuation and search and rescue plan, which are logged and available to Her Majesty’s Coastguard and exercised periodically.

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Telephone Services

lord laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 26 January (HL4622) concerning the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, what survey of incoming telephone calls was undertaken to determine that the average waiting time for calls to be answered is 32 seconds; who undertook the survey; over what period of time it was undertaken; and how many complaints the Agency has received in the average year since 2010 concerning (1) calls not answered, and (2) lengthy waits for calls to be answered.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Average waiting times for telephone calls to be answered by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency’s (DVLA) contact centre are determined by its automated call monitoring system. The 32 seconds waiting time was the average between April 2016 and January 2017. Since 2010, the DVLA’s contact centre advisers handle on average 10.6 million calls each year. Over this period, the DVLA has received 72 complaints in the average year about busy lines. A further breakdown to determine specifically those complaints about telephones calls that have not been answered or have been subject to lengthy waiting times is not available.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 1 February (HL4840), what estimate they have made of the percentage reduction in capital and operating cost of HS2 if the maximum operating speed were 320 kph rather than 360 kph; and whether there is to be a requirement that the manufacture or assembly of the trains will be undertaken in the UK.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The government believes that HS2 should be designed to a maximum speed of 360km/h, with a route alignment enabling up to 400km/h in the future. In 2012 HS2 Ltd advised that the cost of building the Phase 1 consulted route at 200km/h would be 9% lower than the cost of a route designed to a maximum speed of 360km/h. An intermediate speed option of 300km/h was considered to test the operating cost and value for money implications of a lower operating speed. This option increased journey times, reducing the forecast benefit-cost ratio of the Scheme. Whilst a lower operating speed – including 320 km/h - could result in marginally reduced rolling stock capital costs and some reduction to operating costs; these are more than offset by the significant loss in revenue and user benefits.It is too early to confirm whether the manufacture or assembly of the trains will take place in the UK. However, when tendering, bidders will be required to make clear how their proposal in respect of designing, building, testing and maintaining the rolling stock will deliver the HS2 Programme’s strategic goals and objectives. These include the development of long term design and manufacturing skills, creation of employment opportunities and investment in workforce education to add value to the UK economy.

Transport: Rural Areas

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 concerning social aid for transport for residents of remote regions can be introduced in England; for what purposes; and what aid is already in place.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Article 51 of Regulation No 651/2014 is a permissive provision that specifies types of aid that will be deemed compatible with EU state aid rules. The Article itself does not require any action to be taken for it to be introduced in Member States; this is a Regulation and is directly applicable. The decision of whether to grant such aid is one for Member States.

Road Traffic Offences: Mobile Phones

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to amend the law to allow the automatic confiscation of a mobile phone that has been used illegally by a driver.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government is increasing the fixed penalty notice for using a hand held phone when driving from 3 to 6 points and £100 to £200 from 1 March 2017. We plan to evaluate the effectiveness of this action. There are no further measures planned.

Electric Vehicles

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the statement by the Secretary of State for Transport on 24 October 2016, whether they plan to limit charges for the use of electric charging points; and if so, how they intend to do so.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Our view is that pricing is ultimately a commercial decision for network operators or host sites. However, we do not want prohibitive pricing to be a barrier to the take up of electric vehicles, and we will continue to monitor developments closely. The Government has announced its intention to make new regulations to require clear and consistent pricing information at electric vehicle chargepoints, which could make public charging easier for electric vehicle drivers, and encourage a more competitive and consumer-friendly market. We have identified existing powers which should allow much quicker action to be taken. We will bring forward new regulation in 2017, consulting further as necessary to improve consistency of pricing information.

East Coast Railway Line

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to make funding available to enable substantial upgrades of rail infrastructure on the East Coast Main Line during Control Period 6.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The East Coast Route Study is currently in development and will be published in Summer 2017, led by Network Rail’s Network Strategy and Planning team. This document will take a long term view to 2043 and consider what is needed to support this in Control Period 6. The Government will be setting out its priorities for investment in rail services and infrastructure in the next Control Period (2019-2024) later this year. This will be informed by advice from the rail industry and other key stakeholders including Transport for the North.

Electric Vehicles

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have had discussions with vehicle manufacturers to work towards the standardisation of styles and shapes of electric charging systems in vehicles so that they are more compatible with a wider range of charging points.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Industry has been moving towards standardised connections between electric vehicles and chargepoints. In the UK we have already sought to address this by ensuring that all Government funded rapid chargepoints must be multi-standard, and work with all available types of plug-in vehicle. All Government-funded slower chargepoints must also have a Type 2 inlet on them – no other sockets are permitted. This position is supported by vehicle manufacturers, all of whom agree that Type 2 is the most appropriate standard for public charging in the UK. The recent EU Directive (2014/94/EU) on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure, currently being transposed into UK law, will also facilitate the standardised provision of connectors for chargepoints across Europe.

Aviation: Regulation

lord trefgarne: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it is their intention to repatriate to the Civil Aviation Authority the regulation of civil aviation following Brexit.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is the Government’s expert Arm’s Length Body for the safety, security, consumer rights and economic regulation of civil aviation in the United Kingdom. The CAA participates in European Union (EU) regulatory systems in these areas. The Government is considering carefully all the potential implications arising from the UK’s exit from the EU, including for the aviation industry.

Solar Power: Roads

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the cost-effectiveness, durability, safety and efficiency of paving roads with solar panels.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: No assessment has been made by the Department for Transport regarding the cost-effectiveness, durability, safety and efficiency of paving roads with solar panels. The Department is aware of similar schemes overseas, including France, the Netherlands and the United States of America and will monitor the progress of them.

A1: Nottinghamshire

lord jopling: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 19 September 2016 (HL1574), whether they will now publish in the Official Report the findings of the inquiry which was set up as a consequence of the escalation in costs for the A1 road improvement at Elkesley by 83 per cent to £13.6 million.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The outcome of Highways England’s review is set out below. Highways England found that a number of unforeseen and additional areas of work were identified after award of the contract, which added to the programme, as well as the cost. These include:Changes to the central pier designRemoval and treatment of a previously unidentified old landfill site.The need to excavate old concrete and tarmac within the central reservation.The need for an additional drainage pond Highways England has taken steps to minimize the risk of a repeat of the escalation in costs seen on this scheme.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

EURATOM

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what will be the effect of the Government's decision to leave Euratom on the cost, safety and regulatory processes associated with existing and planned nuclear power stations.

lord prior of brampton: Maintaining the UK’s ability to trade in nuclear materials and equipment will be a key objective in negotiations to allow the uninterrupted progress of the UK’s nuclear programme, which includes existing and planned nuclear power stations. Those negotiations have not yet started, but officials and Ministers are in regular contact with industry stakeholders and will continue to work closely with them as the negotiations progress.The Government remains committed to the highest standards of nuclear safety, safeguards and support for the industry, and the Office for Nuclear Regulation will continue to be the independent regulator for the civil nuclear sector.

Motor Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of Brexit, what plans they have to encourage investment in the car production industry.

lord prior of brampton: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy works closely with the UK automotive industry including through the Automotive Council to understand the issues and opportunities the sector faces. The Government will continue its successful and longstanding programme of support for the competitiveness of the automotive sector, including pursuing a bold and ambitious Free Trade Agreement with the EU that provides the greatest possible tariff free and frictionless trade in goods and services.

Tax Avoidance

lord harries of pentregarth: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 28 December 2016 (HL4016), and in the light of the LuxLeaks trials in Luxembourg, whether they intend to review their policy of not offering immunity from prosecution to whistle-blowers in so far as it applies to cases where information has been supplied about aggressive tax avoidance schemes that have caused a significant loss to the public purse.

lord prior of brampton: The Government does not currently intend to review the law.

Consumers: Protection

lord bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 1 February (HL4906), whether the Consumer Green Paper will address the level of staffing in local authorities which is deemed sufficient to enforce consumer protection.

lord prior of brampton: Dangerous goods, poor quality services and criminal scams damage consumer confidence and legitimate businesses – a strong protection system benefits everyone.There has been significant progress to improve coordination of consumer protection since 2011 but more needs to be done, particularly in light of the reductions in resource at local authorities. We are examining the consumer protection regime and will consider proposals for the Consumer Green Paper in Spring 2017.

Regional Growth Fund

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the Regional Growth Fund on stimulating enterprise in the English regions.

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the Regional Growth Fund in assisting the areas and communities in England that are currently dependent on the public sector make the transition to sustainable private sector-led growth and prosperity.

lord prior of brampton: The £2.6 billion Regional Growth Fund is on track to deliver £16 billion of private sector investment and over 550,000 created or safeguarded jobs by the mid-2020s.

Ministry of Justice

Community Rehabilitation Companies

lord german: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the value of each contract made with community rehabilitation companies in the last 12 months.

lord keen of elie: There have been no contracts made with Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) by the Ministry of Justice in the last 12 months. The contracts with CRCs were awarded in December 2014 and went live in February 2015.

Community Rehabilitation Companies

lord german: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what services community rehabilitation companies are required to deliver as part of their contract with Government.

lord keen of elie: Contractual requirements are available online via the Contracts Finder section on Gov.uk. All offenders, including those sentenced to less than 12 months, now get targeted support when they leave prison to help them reintegrate into society. We are carrying out a comprehensive review of the probation service to improve outcomes for offenders and communities. Public protection is our top priority and we will not hesitate to take the necessary action to make sure our vital reforms are being delivered to reduce reoffending, cut crime and prevent future victims. We will set out more detailed plans after our review is completed in April.

Prison Sentences

lord trefgarne: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many persons are presently serving sentences of imprisonment for public protection in England and Wales; and how many of them are more than 80 years of age.

lord keen of elie: As at 31 December 2016 there were 3,683 prisoners serving a sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP). Of the 3,683 IPPs, 599 were pre-tariff and 3,081 were post-tariff. There are currently fewer than 3 IPP prisoners in prisons aged over 80 years old. We are working hard to reduce the backlog of parole hearings involving IPP prisoners. We have set up a new unit within the Ministry of Justice to tackle this issue and are working with the Parole Board to improve the efficiency of the process.

Council Tax: Non-payment

baroness afshar: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people have been subject to suspended committals for non-payment of council tax over the last three years; and what was the breakdown by (1) gender, and (2) age groups.

lord keen of elie: The table below shows the number of cases subject to suspended committals for non-payment of Council Tax over the last three years by gender. There are a few cases where the gender is not known. Data relating to age is not held centrally. Year Male Female Not KnownTotal 20145494821481,17920155474021661,1152016 (January -September)313232137682 It is possible that one defendant may have more than one case. Although suspended committals are reported as occurring within a particular year, the non-payment of Council Tax itself may be from a previous year or even a period covering more than one year. This data is sourced from the HMCTS Libra Management Information System (MIS), and does not form part of the statistics for England and Wales published by the Ministry of Justice, which can be found at: www.justice.gov.uk. As such this data set is not subject to the same levels of quality assurance.

Prisoners: Republic of Ireland

baroness corston: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many citizens of the Irish Republic are held in UK prisons.

baroness corston: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many citizens of the Irish Republic sentenced to prison in the UK are permitted to serve their sentence in the Republic.

lord keen of elie: At 31 December 2016, there were 746 Irish citizens detained in England and Wales in prisons and in the NOMS run Immigration Removal Centres. The United Kingdom and Ireland are signatories to the Council of Europe Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons. The Convention provides for the voluntary transfer of an individual. It is open to any Irish national serving a sentence of imprisonment to apply for transfer. The transfer of prisoners from Scotland and from Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and is the responsibility of the relevant devolved authority.

Carillion

baroness corston: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the performance by Carillion of their contract to provide personal items to serving prisoners.

baroness corston: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ensure that Carillion complies with its contract to provide personal items to serving prisoners.

lord keen of elie: Carillion plc, along with Amey plc, provide Facilities Management (FM) services for the public sector prison estate in England and Wales. Contractors have a responsibility to provide a linen and laundry sorting service to the prison; although most of the items passing through this service are actually the property of the prison. In most prisons, the sorting of these items is delivered by prisoners under the management of Stores personnel who are provided by the FM contracts. Although at the outset of the contract there were some issues with resources, performance in this area has generally been good. FM contracts commenced in June 2015 and the Ministry of Justice continues to robustly monitor the performance of contractors.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Mass Media

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of reports that the Minister for Digital and Culture is holding talks with UK newspaper industry representatives on accuracy in journalism and the rise of fake news, whether, as part of those discussions, he intends to raise the issue of fake news stories in mainstream tabloid newspapers.

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will investigate the propagation of fake news in the mainstream media.

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister for Digital and Culture on 29 November 2016 (53857) that they are "considering the implications of the dissemination of fake news on social media sites", what assessment they have made of whether fake news stories generated online through social media are more widely believed than fake news stories in the mainstream media; and, if they are not more widely believed, why they are taking steps to counteract fake news on social media.

lord keen of elie: There are existing mechanisms in place to address inaccurate news in the mainstream media including requirements in the Broadcasting Code for television and radio programmes and requirements in the Editors' Code of Practice for publishers who are members of a self-regulator. The Minister for Digital and Culture will shortly be sending invitations to select organisations to attend a discussion on fake news.

Press Recognition Panel

lord lexden: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Press Recognition Panel is entitled, under powers granted to it by the Royal Charter, to advocate changes to English law.

lord keen of elie: The purpose of the Press Recognition Panel is to carry on activities relating to the recognition of self-regulators in accordance with the terms of the Royal Charter. The Press Recognition Panel is not prohibited from publishing information regarding the press self-regulatory framework delivered by the Royal Charter.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Air Pollution

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ensure that air pollution levels are reduced in the UK, in the light of the alert declared in London recently as a result of toxic air peaks.

lord gardiner of kimble: The United Kingdom complies with EU legislation for nearly all air pollutants, but faces challenges in achieving nitrogen dioxide limits, along with 16 other EU member states. That is why we have committed more than £2 billion since 2011 to reduce transport emissions and the autumn statement provided a further £290 million to support greener transport. Air quality is improving, but the Government recognises that we need to go further and faster and we will be consulting on a new national plan by 24 April. The final plan will be in place by the end of July. As part of the national air quality plan already in place we are requiring five cities (Birmingham, Derby, Leeds, Nottingham and Southampton) to implement Clean Air Zones. London faces the greatest challenge because of the size and complexity of the Capital’s transport networks and construction activity from unprecedented growth. The Mayor is responsible for air quality in the capital and has reserve powers under Part IV of the 1995 Environment Act to enable this. Under the Act the Mayor may direct the boroughs in the Greater London area concerning how they should assess and prioritise action in their areas. From September 2020 an Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) will be introduced in London. The ULEZ will apply to all cars, motorcycles, vans, minibuses, buses, coaches and HGVs and will cover the same area as the current Congestion Charge Zone.

Home Office

State Visits: USA

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the cost to the UK of providing security for the visit of the US President to the UK; and which department or agency will be meeting those costs.

baroness williams of trafford: Policing is a devolved matter, and as such the level of policing required and costs incurred for specific events is a matter for the relevant Chief Constable and Police and Crime Commissioner. Police and Crime Commissioners can make an application for a Special Grant if they face significant and exceptional costs.

HM Treasury

Inflation

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they are taking to ensure that general living standards do not suffer as a result of rising inflation.

baroness neville-rolfe: Living standards, as measured by real household disposable income per head, grew at their fastest rate in 14 years in 2015. This took living standards to their highest ever level, and they are forecast to have risen further in 2016. From April 2017, the Personal Allowance will rise to £11,500 and the National Living Wage to £7.50 an hour, meaning families will keep more of what they earn. We are helping households with the cost of living by increasing the supply of affordable housing, banning letting agents’ fees and freezing fuel duty. We also believe our investment to boost productivity will raise living standards in the long run.

Insolvency

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they are taking to reduce levels of insolvency among UK borrowers.

baroness neville-rolfe: The government is committed to supporting individuals in problem debt and has a range of measures in place to support consumers. The Money Advice Service (MAS) coordinates the provision of free-to-client debt advice. Last financial year, MAS had a budget of £75m and funded 380,000 free-to-client debt advice sessions. In October 2016 the government announced plans to restructure the financial guidance landscape and bring debt advice, money guidance, and pensions guidance together in a single body to give consumers better access to the financial information they need. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) took over responsibility for regulating the consumer credit market in April 2014, and introduced binding rules which strengthen consumer protection. These rules are based on the principle that money should only be lent to a consumer if they can afford to repay it. Lenders must also show forbearance if there is evidence of financial difficulty. The FCA also introduced a cap on the cost of payday loans, which came into force in January 2015. As part of the review of this price cap, the FCA will examine the high-cost credit market more broadly (such as rent-to-own), and consider whether further interventions are necessary to address the risk of consumer harm.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade

lord hoyle: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what were the main exports and imports between the UK and (1) France, (2) Germany, and (3) Italy, in (a) 2014, (b) 2015, and (c) 2016.

lord price: The top three exports and imports which the UK trades with France, Germany and Italy are shown in the tables attached. This data contains HMRC trade in goods data, which is on the basis of goods crossing the customs border, and trade in services data which is from the ONS Pink Book on a balance of payments basis. Data for 2015 is pending correction by ONS, so is not shown. Data for 2016 will be published later this year. Both the HMRC and ONS data has been published and is publicly available.Further information on UK trade in goods is available in the HMRC Overseas Trade Statistics interactive database.Further information on 2014 UK trade in services is available in ONS The Pink Book 2016.



The top three exports and imports 
(Word Document, 16.95 KB)